Pulling for the Whales here in the final

1987 Marcotte Cup Championship Finals

1 Portarra Whales vs 2 Kavalos Electrics

The two best teams in the league meet for the 28th Marcotte Cup. The Electrics have now been to four of the last five Finals, beating Trowburgh in 1985 for their first Cup. The Whales return to the Finals for the first time since 1968 and haven't won a title since 1963. The Kavs have been a perennial contender for more than a decade while the Whales had a strong team in the 70's that infamously underachieved and endured a brutal rebuild to recently gain momentum. Kavalos recently lost a Game 7 against the Kings in the 1986 Finals while the Whales were also upset by the same Kings in the semi-finals. Portarra will have home ice advantage.

The Electrics return a nearly identical roster from last year's run with forwards Leo Stendahl, Dean Ciraulo and Denis Lemieux headlining. A second line with Jed Poe, Pontello and Ranew is a strong checking line while their third line with Moeller, Bagwell and Kuykendahl has become a versatile and tough line to score against. Goalie Tim Sagendorf has lost a step and is splitting more time with the very capable Gregg Steinecke who has been playing great. The team captain, stellar defenseman and reigning League MVP Darren Cain has taken his game to a new level and leads a studded cast with Derick Meade, Frank Lambrou and Gary Holck. Rookie Jesse Powell is on a third pairing with Todd Kohn. On the bench, longtime coach Harley Sweeney calls the shots with former hall of fame player Marlin Parr.

The Whales are led by a ferocious top line of “Bronko” Bill Bronkowski, Ray Parrino and Eric Caparros, dubbed by some fans as the “Three Buckaroos.” Longtime Whale, Red Czekanski leads a second line with Mixon and Lancaster. A deep third line of Dawkins, rookie Brinson and Park can score on their own as well. Hometown kid Brian Mahaffey holds down the net duties with Zeke Frand backing him up and making spot starts. Eli Priestley leads an eclectic blue line with Herb Hass. Ray Royce and Colton Isom are homegrown prospects while Andrus and Young are on a serviceable third pair. Head coach Sid Snyder leads the team with Scott Baumann on the bench.


Game 1: KAV 1 @ POR 2 (OT) – The first game of a highly anticipated series was as advertised with both teams playing strong from the drop. Portarra scored first on a putback by Ray Parrino. The Kavs answered back in the second with a shot from Denis Lemieux. A scoreless third sent it to OT where both goalies made outstanding saves deep into the period. A scramble near the net gave Bronkowski the chance to put home the decider.

Game 2: KAV 1 @ POR 2 (2OT) – This time the game was scoreless until a wild last five minutes in the third where Parrino scored and then Leo Stendahl scored the equalizer just a minute later to keep the game tied. The first OT period came and went until a few minutes into the second OT where Eli Priestley blasted home a power play rocket to win it.

Game 3: POR 3 @ KAV 4 – In Kavalos at the Bright House the scoring opened up as both teams found their stride. Two quick goals from Bronko and Caparros nearly got Sagendorf pulled but the Electrics locked it down after that as Darren Cain got the scoring started. Ciraulo tied it at 2 and Jed Poe added a third. Stendahl built the lead with another goal. The Whales fired back in the third period on a Czekanksi goal but it was too late.

Game 4: POR 1 @ KAV 5 – The Kavs tied up the series in style as they handled the Whales attack with Darren Cain shutting down Bronkowski while adding a goal of his own. Stendahl scored twice and Lemieux and Kuykendahl also scored. A garbage time goal from Herb Hass blew the shutout but the Kavs were glad to square the series before heading back to Portarra.

Game 5: KAV 0 @ POR 3 – Brian Mahaffey had the game of life as he was brilliant in stopping every shot for 38 saves. Bill Bronkowski scored from the slot in the second and Michael Mixon followed it soon after with a rebound to go up 2-0. A late surge by the Kavs in the third threatened to break the goose egg but Caparros sent an empty-netter to seal it.

Game 6: POR 0 @ KAV 3 – With Tim Sagendorf nursing a groin injury, Gregg Steinecke stepped in and was a stone wall in the net as he frustrated the Whales who were gunning to put away the series. Darren Cain scored again and had a save of his own as he just barely deflected a sure goal by Bronko by the tip of his blade with Steinecke out of position. Denis Lemieux posted a highlight-reel shot from mid-slot that Mahaffey never saw. A late goal from Frank Lambrou put it out of reach to send the Electrics and Whales to a decisive Game 7.

Game 7: KAV 1 @ POR 3 – The first period racked up three times as many hits than shots on goal as both teams tried to gain an advantage on the boards. Ray Parrino broke the tie in the second with a power play goal. Leo Stendahl answered back late in the period with a deflected goal to tie it back up. Midway through the third, Eli Priestley broke up a pass which Bronkowski snagged on the breakaway and unloaded a beautiful backhander one-on-one against Sagendorf to put the Whales up by one with just 5 minutes to go. The Kavs nearly tied it again on a shot from Cain that Mahaffey was able to get a skate on and push just past the goalpost. An empty net goal from Priestley in the final minute put the bow on top of a fantastic series as the Whales finally claimed their third Marcotte Cup. Bill Bronkowski was awarded Series MVP, although for the first time the losing team had a player nearly win it in Darren Cain. The Whales players and team staff immediately emerged from their arena and paraded the Marcotte Cup down the boulevard in celebration with thousands of fans in an unplanned party.


One of the original franchises finally gets another Cup after 24 years!
C&C always appreciated.

Up next: a mountainous offseason for the THL

Last edited by Steelman (5/13/2021 10:49 pm)

Dan O'Mac wrote:

Your game scores make it look like the Electrics won Game 7.

Looks like the scores were from the previous finals, good catch. Fixed now!

Congrats to the Whales, it's been a long time coming!

Sad to see the Barbarians move, I think the new look is a downgrade from the old one. Not sure how well two teams in Alko will go so soon, especially since the Wizards haven't had a lot of time to really establish themselves.

The Winter Classic jerseys look fantastic, especially my Glaciers, who have returned the pizza slice to the front of the jersey! If it was real, I'd absolutely be buying one of those. Absolutely beautiful!